NEWS OF RELIGIOUS CONFLICT & INTOLERANCE

2002-MARCH

2002-MAR-2: USA: Anti-semitic comments by Billy Graham:
After thirty years, tape recordings made in 1972 of
conversations between Billy Graham and former president Richard Nixon have
been released. "...the nation's best known preacher is heard to agree
with a stream of bigoted comments from President Richard Nixon about Jews."
11 At one point in the discussion, Graham commented
about Jews : "They swarm around me and are friendly to me. Because they
know that I am friendly to Israel and so forth. But they don't know how I
really feel about what they're doing to this country, and I have no power
and no way to handle them." Replying to one of Nixon's comments,
Graham said that their media "stranglehold has got to be broken or the
country's going down the drain."

Graham issued an apology on MAR-1, saying: "Although I have no memory
of the occasion, I deeply regret comments I apparently made in an Oval
Office conversation with President Nixon...some 30 years ago...They do not
reflect my views and I sincerely apologize for any offense caused by the
remarks."

The Patriot-News of Harrisburg PA sought comments from local
clerics:

Rabbi Peter Kessler of Temple Ohev Sholom said: "I'm
really shocked...I would expect that of Pat Robertson, not Billy
Graham...My hope is that...there has been a change in his thinking."

Rev. Joy Kaufmann of the Pennsylvania Council of
Churches said: "What he said was unconscionable. He would have to
do a whole lot of apologizing in my book...It's my opinion that he said a
lot of things in the late '60s and early '70s that he has since
modified...I would really like to hear what he would say now."

Rev. John Kurtz of Shiremanstoen United Methodist Church
said that the report must somehow be wrong: "I came to Christ under
Billy Graham...I'm a real fan. I can't imagine him having that attitude
toward the Jewish people. [If he did] I'd have a real problem with it. I
have no room for that in my own theology."

Rabbi Carl Choper of Temple Beth Shalom in
Mechanicsburg said that this "should be a wake-up call to all
Christians. There is such a legacy of anti-semitism in Christianity that
goes back to its very beginnings."

2002-MAR-2: TX: Unusual beliefs involved in Andrea Yates'
trail: Andrea Yates is being tried for filicide after allegedly having
drowned of her five children, aged 7,5,3,2 and 6 months in their bathtub.
A defense psychiatrist claims that she had unwavering and delusional
beliefs:

That she was not raising the children properly. They
were not "righteous."

That if they continued to live to adulthood, they would
eventually die and would be "doomed to perish in the fires of Hell."

That she was possessed by Satan who was dwelling within
her.

By taking the lives of the children now, she would
prevent them from spending eternity in Hell.
12

According to an ABC TV news report, her husband came under
the influence of a pastor who believed that women should use natural
childbirth to teach them humility. He also taught that children should be
home-schooled. Andrea gave birth without pain medication five times. She
suffered from increasingly serious bouts of post-partum depression with
each birth.

According to an About.com report, she heard voices, saw visions, and tried
to commit suicide twice. She and her husband were warned that there was a
50% chance that her psychosis would return if she had a fifth child. But
they proceeded with their fifth pregnancy anyway. Her physician wrote on
her chart that: "Apparently patient and husband plan to have as many
babies as nature will allow!"

2002-MAR-3: India: Muslim-Hindu mass murders:
During 1992, some Hindus burned down a 16th century mosque in the northern
Indian town of Ayodhya. Their plan was to build a Hindu temple on the
site, which is sacred to followers of both religions. This action has
resulted in the occasional outburst of rioting. In 1993, Hindu-Muslim
riots in Mumbai (formerly Bombay) caused the deaths of 800 people. On
FEB-26, a group of Muslims attacked a train in the western state of
Gujarat. It was filled with Hindu fundamentalists who were returning from
a pilgrimage to Ayodhya. Fifty-eight died. This
generated retaliation by Hindus: As of MAR-3, 499 people have died --
mostly Muslims. Many have been burned to death. By the middle of March,
over 700 people have died.

2002-MAR-3: USA: Pat Robertson preaches hatred:
According to the Boston Globe, Robertson allegedly said on his "700
Club" TV program: "I have taken issue with our esteemed president
in regard to his stand in saying Islam is a peaceful religion. It's just
not. And the Koran makes it very clear: If you see an infidel, you are to
kill him.'' He criticized U.S. immigration policies which he regards
as being ''skewed towards the Middle East and away from Europe that
have introduced these people into our midst [so that they can] 'control,
dominate, and then, if need be, destroy.'' On FEB-24, he allegedly
talked on CNN about ''those people in Mecca'' and stated that Osama
bin Laden is a true follower of the Prophet Mohammed. Robertson also
insisted that Western leaders would benefit from reading the Qur'an just
as earlier leaders would have benefited from reading of Hitler's ''Mein
Kampf'' during World War II. Referring to Robertson's statements, the
Boston Globe commented: "It is that kind of hatred that created the
Taliban oppressors in Afghanistan, that ended the life of Wall Street
Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, that led to 'ethnic cleansing' in the
former Yugoslavia and Rwanda, that drove the butchers in the Crusades, and
that keeps the violence smoldering in the Middle East, Northern Ireland,
and in so many other war-ravaged regions. A religion does not create
murderers. The twisted human psyche does that when it forgets that the
bedrock of all faith is love." 13

2002-MAR-3: Saudi Arabia: Editor of the National Review suggests
"Nuking Mecca:" National Review editor Ron Dreher posted a comment on "The Corner," which forms
part of the National Review online. His posting was titled "RETALIATION." He wrote: "It seems to me, Rich, that if an American city is
nuked by terrorists, we have no choice but to respond in kind -- or we
invite more of the same. But any response is fraught with crippling
complications. I'd say Baghdad, Tehran and Riyadh should make the list,
tout ensemble, and maybe even Damascus. As for Mecca, well, it would feel
good, but we'd have every Muslim on the planet enraged unto ages of ages,
and Rome would be the next target on the terrorist nuke list (ironically,
Jerusalem probably has the best chance of surviving because it is sacred
to all three monotheistic faiths). It occurs to me that it is insane that
we're even having this conversation. It occurs to me that given the events
of 9/11, and the determination and capabilities of our enemies, it is even
more insane not to. God help us all." The Council on
American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) issued a news release on MAR-12,
demanding an apology. They quoted Dreher's posting, but left out his first
two sentences -- thus (in our opinion) changing the nature of
Dreher's posting considerably.

CAIR also commented that "In a September column published on National
Review, Ann Coulter wrote: '...We should invade their [Muslim] countries,
kill their leaders and convert them to Christianity.' " 14

2002-MAR-13 (approx): USA, Vietnam: Memo from Billy Graham to
President Nixon resurfaces: Alexander Cockburn wrote an editorial
concerning a memo sent by Evangelist Billy Graham to President Nixon on
1969-APR-15, during the war in Vietnam. Shortly before, Graham had met
with Christian missionaries from Vietnam. They had recommended that if the
Paris peace talks failed, that the U.S. should escalate the war and bomb
the dikes in North Vietnam. Graham recommended this course of action, and
said that this "could overnight destroy the economy of North Vietnam."
Nixon estimated that such an action could have killed a million people.
Cockburn drew a parallel between Graham's recommendation and the actions
of the German High Commissioner Seyss-Inquart. He was tried as a war
criminal and sentenced to death at Nuremberg for breaching dikes and other
crimes in Holland during World War II. 15

2002-MAR-14: FL: "ATHEIST" license plate considered
objectionable: Steven Miles, 55, vice president of Atheists of
Florida, and an Electrical Engineer, has paid a bit extra each year to
obtain a customized license plate for his car. It reads "ATHEIST." He
regards it as a form of self-expression, because that is his deeply held
religious/philosophical belief system. Over the past 16 years, some people
have attacked his car, destroyed the tag, and left notes or religious
tracts on his car. Recently, ten people signed a complaint with the
Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles. The Department has
decided that the tag is "obscene or objectionable." They have asked
asked that he mail the tag back to him. Presumably, the DMV would consider
a "CHRISTIAN" tag to be quite acceptable. Miles is not returning the tag.
He is in touch with the American Civil Liberties Union.

Christos Tzanetakos, founder of Atheists of Florida, wrote the
department a highly critical letter about its decison. He said that the
DMV seems to be succumbing to the "religious hysteria that prevails
after SEP 11. For the department to claim or state that the word 'Atheist'
is offense or objectionable is something to be upset about."
17

2002-MAR-17: Pakistan: Gunman attacked Christians at prayer:
One, perhaps two, gunmen throwing grenades killed five Christians at the
Protestant International Church in Islamabad in Pakistan. Two
Americans, one Pakistani, one Afghan and one unidentified male were among
the dead. No group has claimed responsibility, but extremist, radical
Islamic Fundamentalists are assumed to be the perpetrators.
16 The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR)
issued a statement on MAR-17: "We condemn this attack in the strongest
terms possible and call for the apprehension of the perpetrators. It is
not only an act of terrorism against innocent civilians, but is also an
assault on the sanctity of a house of worship. No political or religious
cause could justify such horrifying violence." Forty-five people
were injured, including ten Americans and three Canadians.

2002-MAR-17: Saudi Arabia: Allegations against religious police:
The religious police, who are part of the Committee for the Propagation
of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice, allegedly prevented school girls
from escaping their school which was on fire at the time. Fourteen
students died in the blaze at the 31st Girls Middle School
in Mecca. The religious police allegedly did not permit them to leave the
burning building because they were not properly dressed to be be seen in
public. Either they were not wearing a abaya (long robe), or they lacked a
hair covering. The deaths have led to a heated debate within Saudi
Arabia and a demand by Amnesty International for a public
investigation.
18

2002-MAR: USA: Sexual abuse by Roman Catholic priests: A
massive number of allegations of child sexual abuse has emerged across the
U.S. and Canada. Thousands of legal claims have been filed. An increasing
number of Catholic dioceses are turning over their abuse records to the
police.

2002-MAR-18: Israel, Palestine: Reporter recommends Israel adopt
Nazi solution: Vox Day, a WorldNetDaily commentator recommends
that Israel adopt the same policy as the Nazis did in some occupied
countries during World War II: For every Nazi soldier killed, about 10
civilians were rounded up and shot. Day writes: "I believe that the
only way to force Arafat to end his war is to force him to choose between
surrender and merciless brutality. The Israeli government must announce to
the world a unilateral ceasefire, balanced by the deadly promise that for
every Israeli soldier killed, 25 Palestinian police will die. For every
civilian, 100 non-combatant Palestinian adults will be slain, and for
every child, 1000. Furthermore, if another Jewish child is murdered, Mr.
Arafat will be the first to pay the price. Only Palestinian children will
be considered off-limits for these terrible reprisals. Whereas the
historic 10-to-1 fatality ratio maintained a cold peace, the current
3-to-1 ratio foments a hot war. A 1,000-to-1 ratio will bring a permanent
peace, one way or another."
19

2002-MAR-18: Nigeria: Woman appeals death sentence for adultery:
Safiya Hussaini, 33, was conviced of adultery. She was sentenced to be
buried up to her neck in sand and to be stoned to death. However, her
sentence has been deferred until her 13-month-old daughter has finished
nursing. She has appealed her conviction. She claimed that Sharia law
requires four witnesses to have seen the adultery before she could be
convicted. The prosecution argued that witnesses were not required;
adultery had obviously taken place because the woman became pregnant. Her
defence team argued that, under Islamic law, the interval between
conception and birth can be up to seven years! Seven years previous to the
birth of her daughter, she was married to her husband. The lawyers argued
that her husband could have been the father. The appeals court will hand
down its decision on MAR-25. There is strong international interest in her
case. 20

2002-MAR-25: FL: Christian attacks mosque: Charles D. Franklin,
51, of Tallahassee, FL, allegedly drove this pick-up truck into the front
of the Islamic Center of Tallahassee. The incident is being treated
as a hate crime because of statement that Franklin gave after the attack.
He said that he had tried to join the military so that he could "kill
Muslims." He allegedly had a Bible wrapped in a blue cloth in the front
seat of his truck. Fire-fighters allegedly found a bottle of liquid in his
truck which was labeled "holy water." The driver was the only person
injured. The Center sustained about $3,000 damage.
21

2002-MAR-27: ID: Jewish-Roman Catholic dispute over pro-life
exhibit: Rabbi Daniel Fink of Congregation Ahavath Beth Israel
in Boise, ID, has asked Bishop Michael Driscoll to withdraw his church's
co-sponsorship of an anti-abortion exhibit. It has been organized by the
St. Paul's Catholic Student Group, Campus Crusade for Christ,
Intervarsity Christian Fellowship, and Baptist Campus Ministries.
Called "Generation Life — Right, Wrong or Justified," it features a
dozen eight-feet wide panels containing photos of corpses in Nazi death
camps, of African-American lynching victims, and images of aborted fetuses.
Rabbi Fink wrote: "Even if one is strongly anti-abortion, the notion
that a woman who chooses to abort an 8-week-old fetus (or a doctor who
performs such an abortion) is in any way analogous to Nazis or white
supremacist lynch mobs is abhorrent. This demonizes women and doctors,
creating the kind of environment that makes for clinic bombings and
terror....The Nazis systematically destroyed Jewish individuals,
communities and cultures. Southern white supremacists did the same to
black southerners. To say that abortion is no different is to trivialize
the suffering of blacks and Jews."

Bishop Driscoll replied, in part:
"I think reference to the Holocaust was meant to address those who deny
that the Holocaust happened. We, of course, know that the Holocaust
happened. At the very least, there are thousands of pictures and accounts
proving this fact. I think the point being made....is that aborted fetuses
happen and, depending on the method used, some are gruesome....With that
in mind, I do not see a need to ask the St. Paul's Catholic Community,
serving BSU, to withdraw its sponsorship with the other Christian
organizations." 22

References:

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